Monthly Archives: April 2005
NEWS STORY: The Name Game: Italian Press Speculates Wildly on Next Pope
By RNS Blog Editor — April 16, 2005
Religion News Service VATICAN CITY _ Italian newspapers, like nature, abhor a vacuum, and hence in reaction to the press blackout imposed this week by the College of Cardinals, all manner of speculation and rumor has been appearing in the local press. One day Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the secretary of state under Pope John Paul […]
COMMENTARY: Rabbi Writes Open Letter to Cardinals Picking Pope
By RNS Blog Editor — April 15, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) In 1998, my wife and I were guests at St. Martha’s, the beautiful Vatican City residence where the cardinals are currently housed during their conclave to elect a new pope. And like millions of other visitors to Rome, we visited the refurbished Sistine Chapel, where the actual voting will […]
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — April 15, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service Oregon Supreme Court Invalidates Same-Sex Marriages (RNS) The Oregon Supreme Court on Thursday (April 14) invalidated the marriages of 3,000 same-sex couples and refused to decide whether gays and lesbians should have the same rights and benefits as married couples. The decision was a victory for social conservatives who backed […]
John Paul II Used Technology to Shepherd His Flock
By RNS Blog Editor — April 15, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) It may be a stretch to call him “the cyber pope,” but John Paul II will be remembered for embracing electronic technology to reach his flock. An actor in his youth, John Paul was the star of the Vatican Television Center, which sent video of him around the globe. […]
NEWS STORY: Tailor’s Three Candidates for Pope: Small, Medium, Large
By Kein Eckstrom — April 15, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service ROME _ Cardinal William Keeler of Baltimore slipped into Gammarelli’s tailor shop to check on an order, but wouldn’t say if he had his eyes on the white silk cassocks in the window display that have been prepared for the next pope. A few minutes later, Cardinal Edward Egan of […]
COMMENTARY: NBC Miniseries Deserves Eternal Damnation
By RNS Blog Editor — April 15, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) NBC-TV has combined two sure-fire concepts in popular culture _ the miniseries and the end of the world _ in a drama entitled “Revelations” from the Bible book of Revelation. We are told that it is “about a nun and a scientist’s search for signs that Armageddon is at […]
NEWS STORY: Cardinals to Stay at Comfortably Plain Hotel John Paul Built for Conclave
By Kein Eckstrom — April 14, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service VATICAN CITY _ It isn’t exactly the Ritz-Carlton or the luxurious Lord Byron Hotel, but the Domus Sancta Martha inside the Vatican’s walls sure beats the cot and chamber pot treatment of conclaves past. The conclave that begins Monday (April 18) to elect the next pope requires absolute seclusion for […]
RNS Daily Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — April 14, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service Editors who receive Reuters photo feed: Check the RNS photo Web site at https://religionnews.com for a Reuters photo of the tomb to accompany this first story. Mourners Pray at Pope’s Tomb, Buy `Vacant See’ Stamps VATICAN CITY (RNS) Mourners began lining up before dawn Wednesday (April 13) for the chance […]
NEWS STORY: Cardinals May Vote `Old’ to Avoid Consecutive Lengthy Papacies
By Jeff Diamant — April 14, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service VATICAN CITY _ In the days after Pope John Paul II died, cardinals said they were looking for a successor who shared his charisma, worldview and other personal traits. Still, the conventional wisdom of historians and church experts holds that John Paul’s successor is unlikely to repeat at least one […]
NEWS STORY: Churches Seek Probe of Zimbabwe’s Election
By RNS Blog Editor — April 14, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service (UNDATED) The All Africa Council of Churches has called on the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to “urgently” investigate claims of some irregularities in that country’s March 31 parliamentary election. The election gave President Robert Mugabe’s ruling Zanu-PF party an overwhelming victory, providing it with the two-thirds majority needed to amend the […]
NEWS ANALYSIS: Is Bush An Evangelical?
By Adelle M. Banks — April 14, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ The influence of evangelicals is almost everywhere _ from places of political power like Congress and the Supreme Court to cultural status markers like the New York Times’ best-seller list, where titles such as “The Purpose Driven Life” reside. But the person many evangelicals consider the most prominent […]
NEWS ANALYSIS: Is Bush An Evangelical?
By Adelle M. Banks — April 14, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ The influence of evangelicals is almost everywhere _ from places of political power like Congress and the Supreme Court to cultural status markers like the New York Times’ best-seller list, where titles such as “The Purpose Driven Life” reside. But the person many evangelicals consider the most prominent […]
RNS Weekly Digest
By RNS Blog Editor — April 13, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service Editors: Check the RNS photo Web site at https://religionnews.com for a photo of Archbishop Iakovos to accompany this story. High Vatican Official Says John Paul II Could Be Beatified by October VATICAN CITY (RNS) With the approval of his successor, Pope John Paul II could be proclaimed blessed, the step […]
NEWS STORY: What Does a Pope Do? A Job Description for Pontifex Maximus
By Kein Eckstrom — April 13, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service VATICAN CITY _ Wanted: Catholic baptized male, preferably age 65-75. Position: Supreme pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church. Qualifications: Theologically orthodox, media-savvy, willing to travel, familiarity with Scripture and doctrine a must. Benefits: Free housing in the heart of Rome, ’round-the-clock security, 24-hour access to the Almighty, infallibility in faith […]
COMMENTARY: The Bible Was Shaped by Authors Who, Like Us, Had Imperfect Memories
By Tom Ehrich — April 13, 2005
c. 2005 Religion News Service INDIANAPOLIS _ Standing in the pulpit, this time seeing their faces, I tell about my first visit to this large Methodist church 40-some years ago. Our high school choir sat in the rear balcony, I say, and saw little of what was happening below. All that I remember is the […]
